At the end of August 2023, Connor Herson was the first climber to repeat the difficult trad line Blackbeard's Tears (8c+) on the Northern California coast. In the video of the ascent, the 20-year-old once again demonstrates his ability to make tough climbs look child's play - bat hang included.
Blackbeard's Tears: First repeat in seven years
After Ethan Pringle Blackbeard's Tears was first climbed in the summer of 2016, the tough crack line rejected all those who wanted to climb it for seven years. Until summer 2023 Connor Herson appeared.
This had previously occurred during one Climbing trips in Squamish Pretty much all of the difficult trad test pieces in the area are repeated, including Crack of Destiny (8c), Cobra Crack (8c) or Tainted Love (8b). So the signs were pretty good for the 20-year-old.
And so it happened as it had to happen and Connor Herson secured the first repetition of the traditionally secured crack line. The ease with which he moves over the most difficult terrain is also more than impressive in Blackbeard's Tears.
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Credits: Cover picture Carlo Traversi
